In a recent podcast with ESPN’s Adam Schefter, legendary broadcaster Mike Golic revealed that he did not oversleep once in his 25 years of doing morning radio, 20 of which he had spent with ESPN.
Golic, 57, first began his ESPN radio show with Mike Greenberg in 2000 when it was called Mike & Mike. A falling out between the two pushed Greenberg out and brought Trey Wingo in to take his place in 2017. While the show continued as Golic & Wingo for the last few years, fans had criticized that the show was never the same.
ESPN then suddenly announced in early July that the Golic & Wingo show was to be cancelled amid a reshuffling of the network’s radio schedule. The syndicated show had run 6-10 a.m. daily ET and was simulcast on ESPN2.
Golic’s long run with ESPN radio ending has surprised many in the sports world, including the famed host himself who found out about the show’s cancellation via media reports while on vacation.
“I go away on vacation, what the hell happens? Oh my God. I come back and all of a sudden there’s an expiration date,” Golic said on his show last month. “We know what’s going on, obviously, with the announcement (Tuesday). Our last show is gonna be July 31. It certainly was not my choice. I would’ve loved to have kept doing the show, but listen, I didn’t want to be cut by the Houston Oilers. I didn’t want to be cut by the Miami Dolphins. Sometimes what you want and what happens isn’t the same.”
He continued, “I appreciate what’s been going on on Twitter, and the outpouring of positive thoughts. Certainly not everybody, and that’s fine. You can’t please everybody. It’s been incredible what I’ve heard from people out there and I do appreciate that.”
Golic also assured fans that he was not done yet. “I’m not retiring. I’m too young to retire. My wife won’t let me,” he exclaimed.
Tributes have been pouring in for Golic, including one from his former co-host Mike Greenberg, who incidentally is returning to ESPN Radio as part of a new lineup of shows this month. He will be hosting an afternoon show called The Mike Greenberg Show that will premiere on Aug. 17.
On his show Get Up!, Greenberg remarked that Golic broke though as a broadcaster by first being an athlete. “As a result, he didn’t just open a door for others, he built one,” he said. “There was no door before he came along. So, Mike Golic changed the game for the hundreds of athletes who have followed in his footsteps, and the millions of sports fans who have enjoyed his company all these years.”
Many other took to Twitter to offer support and pay homage to the celebrated radio host. ESPN’s Bill Hofheimer tweeted, “ESPN Radio won’t be the same without @espngolic, who started w/ the network in October 1998. That’s thousands of mornings, interviews, stories, road shows, friendly wagers – and, yes, donuts. There’s a reason Mike is a Hall of Famer.”
Paul Pabst, of The Dan Patrick Show and The Leisuremen on NBC Sports Radio/podcast wrote, “Back when I worked at Espn Radio my cubicle was next to Mike Golic. Often after doing early morning radio, he would stick around to do NFL shows later in the day. He needed to recharge. He would lie down on the carpet and use the lesser-used recycling can as a pillow. Respect.”
USA Football tweeted, “A football… Player, coach, analyst, commentator and dad. Mike Golic has done it all for the game and we’re proud to call him a friend. We’ll miss starting our days with you, Mike.”
The Golic & Wingo show is being replaced by Keyshawn, Jay and Zubin, which will feature former New York Jets receiver Keyshawn Johnson, former NBA guard Jay Williams and SportsCenter host Zubin Mehenti. The new show will premiere the same day Greenberg comes back to the network on Aug. 17.
According to the New York Post, Golic’s contract with ESPN is up at the end of this year. Richard Dietsch of The Athletic had tweeted on July 7th, “For those interested given ESPN Radio changes: Mike Golic remains under contract with the company. ESPN says his future assignments are TBD.”
It was about a week later on July 13th that sportswriter Adam Schefter tweeted, “After leaving ESPN radio later this month, @espngolic will work as a college football analyst for ESPN. He will now do what he did during his first 10 years at ESPN.”
Hopefully this means Golic will be back to work soon and thankfully he is not taking things too personally. Speaking to Sarah Spain recently on the That’s What She Said podcast, Golic remarked, “At the end of the day, it’s business. I’ve always said this about this about football and it’s true in anything, you’ve got to be careful at taking things too personally.”
Golic took to his own Twitter on August 3rd and wrote, “Pretty weird, 1st day knowing I’m done on ESPN Radio. Brings up a lot of thoughts, but the one that stands out most is how fortunate I was to connect with so many of you every day. I really enjoyed hearing your stories of with whom and how you consumed the show. I will always appreciate being your morning coffee partner all these years! Thank you very much! I look forward to the next chapter.”
Sources:
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2020/07/espn-mike-golic-final-show-radio-media
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2020/08/espn-mike-golic-adam-schefter-podcast-wakeup
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2020/07/espn-mike-golic-out-new-job-college-football
https://nypost.com/2020/07/08/espn-rebuffed-mike-golics-push-to-revive-mike-mike-wife/